In the current state of the art in the field of ejection of an item, such as submunition or munition, from an air vehicle, there are essentially three standard techniques. The first technique involves ejecting a payload of submunitions through the nose of the vehicle by an explosive charge located behind the payload. This technique is used primarily with flechette or rod type submunitions. The second technique involves ejecting the payload through the side of the air vehicle (radial ejection). In the third technique, the submunitions are ejected from the rear of the air vehicle (axial ejection).
In all of these techniques, the ejecting system is designed for a single type of submunition and utilizes a single level of force. Such an ejecting system cannot compensate for variations in the velocity of the air vehicle, the height from which the item (submunition) is ejected or any other factors that can affect the precision placement of the submunitions in actual (battlefield) use.
Further, the submunitions ejected using any of the above three techniques are ejected either simultaneously or in a very rapid sequence so that all are placed into the same target area. Multiple target areas separated by some distance cannot be accommodated by a single air vehicle. Finally, the radial ejection technique, in particular, leads to high shock and acceleration loads on the submunitions, since the ejecting system must break any restraining straps that hold the submunitions in place in the air vehicle before the submunitions can be separated from the air vehicle.
What is needed is an ejecting mechanism that can drop various submunitions as required onto different target areas that may be separated by various distances. Such an ejecting system should take into account the changing flight speed of the air vehicle, its height over the intended target area and the aerodynamic characteristics of the particular submunition selected for ejection, in order to produce the level of force necessary to eject the submunition so that it lands on the intended target.